To hate the process for buying concert tickets☹️

[Onthemoooove]

First the Oasis debacle and now Radiohead.

DD is a massive Radiohead fan. Neither she or any of her friends were lucky enough to get codes which would allow them access to the booking site and, from what I hear, even those who did struggled to get affordable tickets or had countless issues with the site crashing, being kicked out under suspicion of being a bot etc etc. Getting tickets for any popular artist these days seems to be an extremely painful and complicated process!

I saw many big artists when I was younger and don't recall having much trouble getting tickets. For example, I saw Madonna at the height of her fame. I remember seeing it advertised, asking around my friends and 6 of us wanted to go so I collected their money and, as I worked near Wembley at the time, sauntered down to the box office in my lunch hour. It wasn't busy and I came away with my 6 tickets no problem.

While the Internet has certainly made many things easier, this is not one of them! Is the demand greater these days? Doubt it. It's so bloody frustrating!

I got tickets for Coldplay back in 2021 to see them at Wembley in 2022 and it was NOTHING like the last release of tickets . I forgot to log on and didn’t expect to get tickets but I walked into the online waiting room and only waited a few minutes and purchased tickets no stress … then Coldplay hit Tik Tok and Jesus Christ concerts have gone crazy . Everyone and their dogs wants to get tickets to see Coldplay now ! I tried this time round and think there was 300,000 + waiting to get tickets !

Same with Ed Sheeran . 2021 my partners sister rang my dp and said I’ve just got tickets for Ed Sheeran so we came off the phone and it was about 11am and there was absolutely no stress , we just bought the tickets .

I honestly think it’s the internet and everyone gets FOMO now if they don’t get to go to the latest big concert .

I had a presale code for Florence and the machine tickets by buying the album. But that was a waste as presale tickets sold out. Then waited for general release and same thing. Yet minutes later they go on resale for 2 times or 3 times the original price.

But if these artists really cared about their fans they would encourage tickets selling companies to do something about it.

I won't attempt to buy at stupid prices and just accept that once again il not get to see an artist I've really wanted to see.

Similar experience to me.
But I also think there are companies/bots buying up multiples of tickets at a time as well.
Back in the 90s when you had to call or turn up in person (im not convinced that fewer people had access to a landlines in those days, than have a mobile now...didnt all/ majority of homes have landlines then..?) they often had a limit of 6 tickets per transaction - presumably to stop touts (although there always were some around the stadium)

Seen this on the Radiohead website. So does it mean all those tickets on viagogo etc will be cancelled and they'll be another chance to buy on 13th October? Would be good if that's the case......

Yes, if by greater accessibility you mean access to trying to buy tickets anywhere and everywhere, then yes, obviously that's easier. Actually getting your hands on them - not so accessible. I think it's absurd to argue that there are swathes of people buying tickets now just because they can do with a smartphone - even if it takes hours and numerous attempts - who just wouldn't have bothered in the 90s because waiting to get home to use a landline was too effortful.

It makes far more sense that this is largely down to the resale market, as well as what at least one pp has referred to above - increased willingness to spend on experiences over stuff in younger generations.

I also don't recognise your depiction of travel, which sound more like shifts in travel over the last 50 years rather than the last 20-30. I was talking about the late 90s to 2000s, and I really have not noticed train or plane travel getting easier since then. Quite the reverse. Yes, being able to buy a train ticket with an app is handy. Really hasn't made the difference in choosing to travel by train, though, and the experience as a whole has not improved.

I completely agree. I pretty much only attend smaller gigs by less well known / popular acts these days - I also tend to enjoy them more, as you can actually see the act, hear it better, in a generally better atmosphere. You also don’t have to plan getting tickets like some kind of military operation.

I adore Radiohead, my favourite band. Didn’t get a code either. Thankfully I’ve seen them four times before, but would’ve been great to see them again.

I could scrat about looking for resale tickets but I can’t be arsed.

DH and DD are massive Radiohead fans. Four of us registered to try and get a code, but none of us did. Gutted. Then it turned into an utter shitshow for those who actually got codes and tried to buy tickets. Outright carnage.

DH has ended up paying £700 for a ticket from Viagogo. So much for Radiohead wanting to keep it fair and equal for their fans.

I remember getting Red Hot Chilli pepper tickets by phone in the 90s. It was the evening, it was direct to the box office, I got “you are number 10 in the queue” type of message, I hung on, I spoke to a human, paid by card over the phone and that was that, tickets sent by post to my home address. Result: I had 4 tickets at face value, direct from the box office, no messing, no hassle. Or you could turn up in person and get them if you lived close enough.

come on, they are all in on it now, everyone involved in the industry . They CAN do it a different way, they just choose not to cos it’s a big money spinner. They can go back to that way. They can start ticket sales from 6pm or something so that most people can try to get them. No online tickets, just the old fashioned way.

They should refuse to allow people into gigs who have bought marked up tickets from places such as Viagogo. The only time I’ve seen it actually put in to action was at an Ed Sheeran gig a few years when people with Viagogo tickets being turned away. Lots of ‘sad face’ photos in the local media the following day but people buying those tickets are part of the problem. If no one bought them there wouldn’t be a market for them.

I thought Ticketmaster did cancel tickets for the Oasis gigs bought though third party sites too so it can be done.

No, it’s not just down to smart phone use, though that is a significant part. Demand is increased due to many reasons – wider marketing and viewership of that marketing. Today, thanks to social media, streaming platforms, mailing lists and instant alerts, almost every fan worldwide knows the second tickets go on sale. More disposable income. More willingness to spend on experiences (as you mentioned). That more people more willingly travel. More people with disabilities are able to attend. Fan bases more global – streaming has exploded artists‘ reach. More people hear about gigs, more people can afford to try, and more people can join the queue at the click of a button.

Nowhere did I argue that the process of getting tickets is a good one. Nowhere did I argue it’s affordable. I’ve said it’s harder and it’s more expensive. What I have said is that the increases accessibility to demand is a good thing. What I’ve also said is that raffling or balloting would be a fairer system.

We’ll have to disagree on travel improvements. But there we go.

I didn’t say they couldn’t. I’ve said a few times that raffling or balloting would be a fairer system. I do think though that increased accessibility is overall a good thing – that doesn’t mean the ticket buying processes itself is good, and nowhere have I said that.

I’d listen to this tbh. Just experienced Ticketmaster releasing more lady gaga tickets for her gig that was apparently sold out for the last few months. Absolute scores of rows that weren’t there before (albeit horrendously expensive) and no one said nothing , they were silently dropped

It’s so frustrating! Often tickets are announced a week or so in advance- rarely around payday.
Tickets are released during working hours so it’s hard to get online. Websites crash as soon as so many people are trying to access at the same time.

I do miss going to the box office and getting a physical ticket at a reasonable price.

You did argue price by telling us you got flights to Barcelona for £29 last summer as if that’s somehow comparable to being able to get flights for <£5 not long ago.

Also, hard disagree on travel service - the train route I used to get in the 2000s used to be 3 trains an hour and now it’s down to 2 an hour and cancellations are far more common. And as I mention, I have to pay literally 4x for the privilege of using this reduced, shoddy service compared to the 2000s.

I have focused on the 2000s over the 1990s as I wasn’t going to concerts in the 90s, but many posters have pointed out how things have deteriorated since much more recently than the 1990s. I agree with PP, things have really become a shitshow since Covid.

We used to have to phone up, and redial, manually on the old house phone until we got through! Never managed to not get a ticket though, saw all the big acts, Prince, Queen, Whitney Houston & tons more. Now I just cannot be bothered, it’s not a fair system at all.

Bit more to it. Acts touted their own tickets and TM monetised the tickets. Acts now make the big money touring and want whatever they can get. TM will use any trick to get more out of us. But yes the bots are a major issue. Suspect they could be stopped tho.

These are often production seats that are sold once the staging is in. But TM do sneak tickets on to maintain the price and also choose to release certain areas when they want

You have to understand that TM monetised the box offices by providing incentives and taking over the headache of running them. They even own the box offices in many places. T onM is a platform that sells tickets on behalf of the artists. The artists are in on it but want their money and TM get it. I know that at eg Co op Live TM own the tills. All the money from drinks etc go to them and if the artist takes a % TM can easily do that. Radiohead don't care. Sell our tickets, make money for us

That was just a quip at the end – though it is true, so it’s not that difficult. Nevertheless, for all the reason I stated, air travel is more accessible now for all than in the 90s. That you personally can’t get tickets for a few quid anymore doesn’t change that.

We’ll have to agree to disagree on travel clearly.

Post Covid has been an extraordinary set of circumstances globally – Russia/Ukraine/ Trump/ Brexit … so I don’t think a thread about concert tix should have to encompass all that.

Remembered that back in the 80s I got a lot of my tickets from this place. It was by Oxford Circus tube so I always had a look in the window on my way to work, popping out at lunchtime to buy tickets if friends were interested. Those were the days! I see it was there until as recently as 2019 which surprises me.

It used to be that you went to a gig, enjoyed it, and that was that.
These days, half the people (if not more!) who go are doing so just so they can say they've been, and put photos/videos online. They wouldn't be getting tickets if they couldn't tell other people they were going. Honestly!

And like others have said, the scalpers are a major issue, too.

I’m not saying £29 flights to Barcelona are not possible if one looks, but it still reflects a six-fold or more increase in prices for budget flights. Meaning hopping to Europe to see your favourite band because you didn’t get a ticket to a UK show is most certainly LESS accessible now. I still remember getting £4 flights to Spain once, how I took those days for granted…!

Totally agree. I honestly don’t recognise the other poster’s description of improved travel, either rail or air. Both have deteriorated significantly since the 2000s - and probably the late 1990s too, although I was travelling much less then - in terms of service and value for money. Especially value for money.

Again, affordable and accessible don’t mean the same thing. Affordability is only part of access. And more people do travel internationally to gigs now compared to the 90s.

Yes, by choosing to spend relatively more on gigs and experiences. Not because it’s more accessible/affordable to go and see your band in another country than it used to be - that’s a nonsense. It’s a shift in spending habits that applies to me and most of those around me. We are paying the ridiculous prices.